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The Grundel
In The Grundel, a young boy asks the Ghostbusters about a strange creature he has seen talking to his brother. Egon soon realizes that the boy described a Grundel, a creature who appears to young kids and turns them bad, until they become Grundels themselves.Eatock, James & Mangels, Andy (2008). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection booklet, p. 28. CPT Holdings, Inc. Cast Jabberwocky Winston Zeddemore Egon Spengler Peter Venkman Ray Stantz Slimer Larry Grundel Alec Meredith Lee Meredith Janine Melnitz Mr. Meredith Equipment Ecto-1 Proton Pack Particle Thrower Trap P.K.E. Meter Dimensional Inverter Sub-etheric Multichannel Differential Analyzer Who's Who and What's That Tobin's Spirit Guide Flashlight Locations Meredith's Apartment Firehouse Alec and Lee's School Plot In the evening, Ecto-1 pursued a Jabberwocky down 16th Street. Peter reminded everyone it wasn't his fault they were in this situation and insinuated Ray chased it through an Alice in Wonderland display at the library. The Jabberwocky ducked into an alley. The Ghostbusters searched around carefully while they recited the Jabberwocky poem. Suddenly, it popped out of a garbage can and grabbed Slimer. It exhaled and blew the guys into a wall. Slimer got lose in time and the Ghostbusters confined the Jabberwocky in four streams. However, it was impossible to get a Ghost Trap out. Slimer saved the say and laid out a Trap for Ray. As the Jabberwocky was drawn in, it tried to grab at Slimer but lost his grip just in time. Peter was impressed and declared they should use Slimer for sheep dogging for every bust. The Ghostbusters and Slimer returned to Ecto-1 to find it boosted. A police officer came forward with the thief, a juvenile delinquent named Larry. As the guys wondered what makes a good child go bad, something manifested in another part of the city. The Grundel went into a shadow form and searched for "another." He arrived outside an apartment building. Two brothers, Alec and Lee, were about to settle in for bed. Alec complained about his day. Once they both went to bed, the Grundel appeared outside the bedroom window and called out to Alec. The Grundel promised Alec could do anything he wanted if he invited the Grundel in. woke up in a hypnotic state and invited the Grundel in. For a brief moment, Alec glowed as the Grundel swirled around him. Lee woke up and asked Alec to close the window. Alec snapped out of his trance, closed the window, and went back to sleep. The Grundel floated above Alec and grinned. At the Firehouse, Peter checked in on Egon, who was still working in his laboratory. Peter inquired what the Sub-etheric Multichannel Differential Analyzer could do but Egon didn't know it. Completely wrapped up in the project, Egon never noticed Peter pulling the plug on it. This only prompted Egon to debug the problem. Peter walked off to the sleeping quarters and found Slimer sleeping in his bed. Peter mused he wasn't that tired but surrendered and went to bed next to Slimer. Still in his lab, Egon noticed his P.K.E. Meter going off. He looked out the window and only saw a school bus pass by. Alec and Lee were in the bus on the way to school. Alec stole something on the ground much to Lee's dismay. Lee was further shocked when he saw Alec talking to the Grundel, who was in the window glass. At noon, the Ghostbusters hosted a rally at Alec and Lee's school. The Grundel convinced Alec to sabotage the Proton Packs before they gave a demonstration. The Ghostbusters demonstrated the Ghost Trap and P.K.E. Meter first. When they turned on the Proton Packs, they lost control of their throwers and wrecked the gym. Peter quickly thanked the children and ushered the others to Ecto-1. The Grundel and Alec gloated under the bleachers. Lee eavesdropped on the pair and was concerned with the discovery. As the Ghostbusters loaded up Ecto-1, Lee approached them. He told the guys about his brother and described the Grundel. The Ghostbusters didn't recognize what he was describing but promised to do the research. Lee thanked them and went off to fourth period. The Ghostbusters returned to the Firehouse and Janine announced they had no calls. Ray quipped they weren't "getting any love" but Janine admitted she loved Ray, Winston, and Peter... sort of. Everyone stared at Egon and walked away whistling. Egon attempted to get Janine to say she loved him, as well, to no avail. He changed the conversation and asked where the copy of "Who's Who and What's That." Janine quickly replied it was in the library, second bookcase, third shelf in the dead center. As Egon walked upstairs a little crestfallen, Janine stopped him and admitted she loved him most of all. Egon perked up but quickly dismissed its significance. Janine opened a drawer and sent Slimer up to slime Egon. At the Meredith apartment, Mr. Meredith admonished Alec for stealing comic books, getting into fights all day at school and kicking Mrs. Faversham's cat. Alec only talked back and marched up to his room. Mr. Meredith was in shock and asked why he couldn't be like his brother. The Grundel declared it was time to turn Lee, too. Alec hesitated but gave into the idea. At the Firehouse, Egon poured through books in the rec room study as the others watched some TV. Alec jumped out the bedroom window and Lee followed. Egon found an entry on the Grundel and explained the creature to the others. The Grundel was a supernatural parasite that made children bad and turned them into Grundels. Ray saw the urgency and sent Slimer to get the Meredith's phone number. Slimer flew through the phone book and had the number inscribed on his belly. Lee followed Alec to an ominous factory. Alec's transformation into a Grundel was almost complete. Lee ran away from the Grundel and Alec but time was running out. The Ghostbusters barged into the factory. Lee fell through the floor and hung precariously. Peter prepared to fire on the Grundel but Egon stopped him and revealed shooting it would harm Alec. Ray added all they had to do was get Alec to reject the Grundel. Peter reasoned with Alec and got him to remember he loved his brother. Peter also told Alec to see the Grundel for the monster it truly was, asking him, "Is that what you want to be like? Is it?!" Alec rejected the Grundel, changed back to normal, and reached for Lee. Angered with the development, the Grundel attacked Peter. Peter flipped him and the others confined him in Proton Streams. While Peter ran to save Alec and Lee, the Grundel was trapped. As the guys drove Alec and Lee home, Alec asked if he could run the siren. When Ray obliged him and told him he could do anything he wanted. A little wiser, Alec thanked Ray but wasn't so sure about doing anything he wanted. As Ecto-1 drove off, a lightning bolt disintegrated the Grundel's hat. Quotes Trivia *The first draft was done on July 17, 1987.Straczynski, J. Michael (2009). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection Volume Three Disc Five, "The Grundel" Script p. 0. CPT Holdings, Inc. *The episode was recorded on August 7 and November 6, 1987.Marsha Goodman (1987). Episode Call Sheet and SAG Report - "The Grundel" (1987). *Maurice LaMarche filled in as Peter on November 6, 1987.Marsha Goodman (1987). Episode Call Sheet and SAG Report - "The Grundel" (1987). *"The Grundel" is one of the last episodes for season three and the only one written by J. Michael Straczynski for the season. Much noted is given to the dark tone of this episode. *This was the only episode written for season 3 by J. Michael Straczynski as he was asked to come back to the show. He wrote the episode on the condition that it wouldn't be rewritten to fit with the character changes that season. *This episode has something of a sequel in Extreme Ghostbusters in the episode "Grundelesque". *Jabberwocky was a creature in "Jabberwocky" a poem of nonsense verse written by Lewis Carroll, originally featured as a part of his novel "Through the Looking-Glass" and "What Alice Found There." *Slimer moves his lips when he reads.Peter Venkman (2009). The Real Ghostbusters - "The Grundel" (1987) (DVD ts. 01:36-01:38). Time Life Entertainment. Peter says: "I've been watching. You still move your lips when you read." **In the first draft, it was Ray that said Slimer moves his lips when he reads.Straczynski, J. Michael (2009). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection Volume Three Disc Five, "The Grundel" Script p. 1. CPT Holdings, Inc. *The Jabberwocky required four streams to contain, whereas the Grundel was contained with three streams. *In the first draft, Peter recited all three parts of the Jabberwock poem.Straczynski, J. Michael (2009). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection Volume Three Disc Five, "The Grundel" Script p. 2. CPT Holdings, Inc. *Ecto-1 is boosted by a juvenile delinquent named Larry in 3.5 minutes. *There is a poster of the Ghostbusters' No Ghost Logo in Lee and Alec's bedroom. *Peter calls Egon "Prince Myshkin," the protagonist of Dostoevsky's "The Idiot."Peter Venkman (2009). The Real Ghostbusters - "The Grundel" (1987) (DVD ts. 07:41-07:43). Time Life Entertainment. Peter says: "And what pray tell, is this Prince Myshkin?" *Egon's copy of "Who's Who and What's That" is located in the second bookshelf, third shelf, dead center; as memorized by Janine.Janine Melnitz (2009). The Real Ghostbusters - "The Grundel" (1987) (DVD ts. 13:40-13:44). Time Life Entertainment. Janine says: "Library. Second bookcase. Third shelf. Dead center." **This is the second time the book was referenced on The Real Ghostbusters. The first was on "Chicken, He Clucked" when Cubby checked out the latest volume from the New York City Public Library before Egon could. *Janine admits to Egon she loves him most of all among the Ghostbusters.Janine Melnitz (2009). The Real Ghostbusters - "The Grundel" (1987) (DVD ts. 13:45-13:49). Time Life Entertainment. Janine says: "Oh, Egon. I love you most of all." *Mrs. Faversham gets a mention in this episode. Since last we've seen her, she's apparently adopted a cat.Mr. Meredith (2009). The Real Ghostbusters - "The Grundel" (1987) (DVD ts. 14:18-14:19). Time Life Entertainment. Mr. Meredith says: "Kicking Mrs. Faversham's cat?!" *In the book that Egon's looking through, you can see pictures of the Genie (in its true form), the Metamorph, Drool the Dog-Faced Goblin (from "Drool, the Dog Faced Goblin") and the Bird of Kildarby (from "The Bird of Kildarby"). *The Meredith Family's home phone number is 555-1383. *Alec is about 13 years old and Lee is about 12.Straczynski, J. Michael (2009). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection Volume Three Disc Five, "The Grundel" Script p. 7. CPT Holdings, Inc. *The school visited by the Ghostbusters was a junior high once attended by Peter.Straczynski, J. Michael (2009). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection Volume Three Disc Five, "The Grundel" Script p. 14. CPT Holdings, Inc. *Coach Carlson was a character found only in the script and was omitted from the actual episode. He was a former teacher of Peter's and thought he would amount to nothing.Straczynski, J. Michael (2009). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection Volume Three Disc Five, "The Grundel" Script p. 14. CPT Holdings, Inc.Straczynski, J. Michael (2009). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection Volume Three Disc Five, "The Grundel" Script p. 15. CPT Holdings, Inc. *After Janine teased Egon about his lack of need for love, Peter, Ray and Winston were whistling part of the theme from another DIC Entertainment animated series, Inspector Gadget. *On page 19 of Transformers/Ghostbusters Issue #3, the Meredith's 555-1383 phone number is one of the pieces of graffiti on Optimus Prime. References Gallery Episode Screen Caps TheGrundel01.jpg TheGrundel17.jpg TheGrundel02.jpg TheGrundel03.jpg TheGrundel18.jpg TheGrundel19.jpg TheGrundel04.jpg TheGrundel20.jpg TheGrundel05.jpg TheGrundel06.jpg TheGrundel21.jpg TheGrundel22.jpg TheGrundel07.jpg TheGrundel08.jpg TheGrundel09.jpg TheGrundel23.jpg TheGrundel10.jpg TheGrundel24.jpg TheGrundel11.jpg TheGrundel12.jpg TheGrundel25.jpg TheGrundel26.jpg TheGrundel13.jpg TheGrundel27.jpg TheGrundel28.jpg TheGrundel14.jpg TheGrundel15.jpg TheGrundel16.jpg Collages and Edits CityStreetsinTheGrundelepisodeCollage.png|''(For full size Click here)'' GBvsJabberwockyinTheGrundelepisodeCollage.png|''(For full size Click here)'' BoostedEcto1inTheGrundelepisodeCollage.png|''(For full size Click here)'' CityStreetsinTheGrundelepisodeCollage2.png|''(For full size Click here)'' CityStreetsinTheGrundelepisodeCollage3.png|''(For full size Click here)'' GrundelinTheGrundelepisodeCollage.png|''(For full size Click here)'' GBsatSchoolinTheGrundelepisodeCollage.png|''(For full size Click here)'' FirehouseRecroominTheGrundelepisodeCollage.png|''(For full size Click here)'' RGB DVD Boxset Features TheRealGhostbustersBoxsetVol3disc5menusc06.png|Episode menu for Volume 3 Disc 5 TheRealGhostbustersBoxsetVol3disc5episode090.png|Episode features Category:RGB Episode